RACINE - A special mayoral election will likely be coming in the next several months.

At Thursday's Committee of the Whole meeting aldermen recommended holding a special election on June 2, with a May 5 primary.

The election would fill the seat that Gary Becker resigned Tuesday, a week after he was arrested on charges of child enticement, possession of child pornography and other related charges.

The aldermen made the decision after about an hour of debate, but it still needs to go to the City Council for final approval. That meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Feb. 3 at City Hall, 730 Washington Ave. Room 205.

The aldermen voted 10-4 for a June 2 election, with four aldermen voting against the recommendation. The dissenting aldermen were: 3rd District Alderman Michael Shields, 4th District Alderman Jim Kaplan, 7th District Alderman Ray DeHahn, and 14th District Alderman Ron Hart. As acting mayor, David Maack did not vote.

Kaplan, who turned in his nomination papers Thursday to run for mayor, said he wants to have an election as soon as possible.

He and other aldermen recommended that the election be held May 5 with a primary coinciding with the April 7 general election.

"The city has been through enough and it's time to move on," Hart said.

An earlier primary coinciding with the April 7 election would also save money.

A primary costs about $36,000, said City Clerk Janice Johnson-Martin. The only change the city would have to make for the April 7 election would be ordering more ballots, Johnson-Martin said.

Alderman Greg Helding initially proposed having a special election in May, but several aldermen said it was too early.

"It's too short a time (for the community) to really examine the candidate's qualifications," 10th District Alderman Tom Friedel said. He wants the community to have a chance to have multiple forums before choosing the city's next mayor, he said.

Alderman Robert Mozol of the 15th District and Alderman Q.A. Shakoor, II of the 8th District also said they didn't want to rush into anything.

About 30 people sat in the audience Thursday, including Pete Karas and Jody Harding, who have both filed nomination papers saying they plan to run for mayor. Harding said she would like to see the election pushed back to the end of summer. Karas said he will be ready whenever it is.

Who fills in?

The aldermen recommended a special election date, but they are still uncertain about who should sit as mayor in the meantime.

Maack has been filling in as acting mayor since Becker was arrested. But state statute requires the City Council to appoint someone in a reasonable amount of time as mayor until a special election, according to City Attorney Rob Weber. It is unclear what a "reasonable amount of time" is, Weber said.

Alderman Jeff Coe of the 1st District made a motion to appoint Maack as mayor until an election, but Maack asked him to retract the motion after hearing about the laws involved in the appointment.

In order for an alderman to be appointed mayor, he would need to vacate his position as alderman and then the City Council would need to appoint him back to the position after a special election. Also, while serving as appointed mayor, Maack possibly wouldn't be able to be on the spring ballot for 5th district alderman, which he is currently running unopposed for.

Instead of appointing someone Thursday, the aldermen decided to hold another meeting in a week. Another Committee of the Whole meeting will be scheduled for 6 p.m. next Thursday at City Hall, 730 Washington Ave. Room 205.

The Committee of the Whole is made up of all of the aldermen but final decisions go to the City Council.

Committee's recommended election timeline

*City Council must still approve

May 5: Primary

June 2: Special election

Source: city attorney

Upcoming meetings

Committee of the Whole

When: 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 29

Where: City Hall, 730 Washington Ave., Room 205

What: Discuss procedure to fill mayor's seat until special election

City Council

When: 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 3

Where: City Hall, 730 Washington Ave., Room 205

What: Vote on special election timeline